Minimizing Falls Risks through a Single Exercise Simplification
Strengthening your core and enhancing balance isn't a chore you have to endure. Easily boost your stability at home through dedicated practice.
Exercise expert Pete Williams, a strength and conditioning coach, has shared a practical exercise that'll amplify your strength and balance, cancelling your dread of falls. He calls it the step and 90 rotation, and it calls for zero equipment.
Here's how to perform the step and 90 rotation:
- Rotate and Lift: Rotate your upper body to the right while lifting your right knee to hip height in a 90-degree bend.
- Pause and Balance: Pause for a moment, maintaining your equilibrium.
- Step it Up: Step your right foot forward.
- Alternate Sides: Repeat the process on the left side, twisting your upper body to the left and raising your left knee.
- Keep It Going: Continue alternating sides to march forward for two minutes.
The step and 90 rotation has a few perks up its sleeve.
"Lifting your knee high engenders strength and power in the hip flexors, a vital muscle group essential for lifting your feet off the ground and tackling various environmental hurdles," Williams tells Fit&Well.
"When you work the lateral glute muscles, they avert hip misalignment, supporting balance and the walking gait's biomechanics," adds Williams.
By incorporating twist and lift motions, this exercise will give your balance a run for its money too.
"Adding a rotation to the exercise intensifies the balance challenge as your body contends with another dimension of movement," Williams explains.
"The outer calf muscles are responsible for ankles control, and working them diminishes the risk of falls," Williams concludes.
If you feel a wobble, grab on to a wall when you lift your leg. Strolling between kitchen counters, like in Williams' demonstration, also works well, as you'll have help on both sides if needed.
Remember, happy and stable days begin with a stable stride. Keep moving, and may balance be forever at your side!
[1] - Source: Pete Williams[5] - Source: [Harris, T., Bendall, M. J., & Kane, C. L. (2009). Balance training for older adults: current evidence, recommendations, and future research.Clinical Geriatrics,__16(5), 375-380.[6] - Image Credit:** Fit&Well
- This step and 90 rotation exercise, recommended by strength and conditioning coach Pete Williams, not only enhances strength and balance but also reduces the risk of falls by working the outer calf muscles for better ankle control.
- By incorporating twist and lift motions, this fitness-and-exercise routine is beneficial for improving health-and-wellness, as it intensifies the balance challenge, engaging multiple dimensions of movement.
- Engaging in regular workouts like the step and 90 rotation can aid in maintaining flexibility and balance as we age, contributing to our overall fitness-and-exercise routine and promoting health-and-wellness.
